Green Jersey

Jersey City mayor’s environmental message aired on idling truck

Go to the jump for video of the ad truck.

Jersey City Mayor Jerramiah Healy has broadcast his campaign message of environmental action in an unlikely place: on the sides of an idling truck.

On Monday night, a truck playing video advertisements for Healy’s campaign was parked, running, next to an entrance to the Grove Street Path Station in downtown Jersey City. As the words “Cleaning up toxic waste” flashed on-screen, exhaust blew out of the truck’s tailpipe. Another ad showed President Obama praising Healy for fighting to bring jobs to Jersey City and getting guns off the streets.

Ten minutes later, the truck still smelled of exhaust and its engine was audible. A half-hour later, the truck was still playing ads and appeared to still be running its engine.

State law prohibits diesel and gas vehicles from idling for more than three minutes.

Healy campaign manager Bud Demellier said yesterday that the truck, from a company called TV on Wheels, was the campaign’s only advertising truck and runs for four hours a day in various places around the city.

“This isn’t something I was even aware of, that it would be idling for any length of time,” he said. “I’ll look into it.”

Later, Demellier said the truck should be running on auxiliary power. “It won’t be on (idling) any longer,” he said. “It has to go on auxiliary power.”

Auxiliary power sources are exempt from the state’s idling rules.

Vehicle exhaust contributes to global warming and has been linked to lung cancer, heart disease, respiratory problems and premature death. It is a major source of New Jersey’s air pollution.